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Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Birthday
June 3, 1946
Place of Birth
Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England, UK
Also Known As
- Penelope Alice Wilton
- Penelope Winton
- Пенелопа Уилтон
- 페네로프 윌튼
Penelope Wilton
1.7 Popularity
Biography
Dame Penelope Alice Wilton DBE(born 3 June 1946) is an English actress. She was formerly married to fellow actor Sir Ian Holm, and as she has not remarried, she retains her married style of Lady Holm. Wilton is known for starring opposite Richard Briers in the BBC sitcom Ever Decreasing Circles (1984–1989), playing Homily in The Borrowers (1992) and The Return of the Borrowers(1993), and for her role as the widowed Isobel Crawley in the ITV drama Downton Abbey (2010–2015). She also played the recurring role of Harriet Jones in Doctor Who (2005–2008) and Anne in Ricky Gervais' Netflix dark comedy After Life. Wilton has had an extensive career on stage, receiving six Olivier Award nominations. She was nominated for Man and Superman (1981), The Secret Rapture (1988), The Deep Blue Sea(1994), John Gabriel Borkman (2008) and The Chalk Garden (2009) before winning the 2015 Olivier Award for Best Actress for Taken at Midnight. Her film appearances include Clockwise (1986), Cry Freedom (1987), Blame It on the Bellboy (1992), Calendar Girls (2003), Shaun of the Dead (2004), Match Point (2005), Pride & Prejudice (2005), The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012), The Girl (2012), The BFG (2016) and The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry (2023). Description above from the Wikipedia article Penelope Wilton, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
7.2
Isobel Merton
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale
2025
1.0
Self
Downton Abbey Celebrates the Grand Finale
2025
7.8
Francine
Dead Hot
2024
5.7
Miss Pinkerton
Murder Is Easy
2023
6.6
Maureen Fry
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
2023
8.0
Self
Judi Dench: Our National Treasure
2022
7.2
Isobel Merton
Downton Abbey: A New Era
2022
6.5
Hester Leggett
Operation Mincemeat
2022
6.2
Vivian
Eternal Beauty
2020
7.5
Older Alice
Summerland
2020
Credits
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale
as Isobel Merton
2025
7.2
Downton Abbey Celebrates the Grand Finale
as Self
2025
1.0
Dead Hot
as Francine
2024
7.8
Murder Is Easy
as Miss Pinkerton
2023
5.7
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
as Maureen Fry
2023
6.6
Judi Dench: Our National Treasure
as Self
2022
8.0
Downton Abbey: A New Era
as Isobel Merton
2022
7.2
Operation Mincemeat
as Hester Leggett
2022
6.5
Eternal Beauty
as Vivian
2020
6.2
Summerland
as Older Alice
2020
7.5
Downton Abbey
as Isobel Merton
2019
7.1
After Life
as Anne
2019
7.9
Zoo
as Denise Austin
2018
6.7
The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society
as Amelia Maugery
2018
7.4
Brexit Shorts: The End
as Helen
2017
10.0
Brief Encounters
as Pauline
2016
6.7
The BFG
as The Queen
2016
6.3
All the World's a Screen: Shakespeare on Film
as Narrator (voice)
2016
0.0
The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
as Jean Ainslie
2015
6.4
National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage
as Delia
2013
6.2
Belle
as Lady Mary Murray
2013
7.1
The Girl
as Peggy Robertson
2012
6.1
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
as Jean Ainslie
2012
6.9
South Riding
as Mrs Beddows
2011
6.9
Downton Abbey
as Isobel Merton
2010
8.1
Harold Pinter: A Celebration
as Self
2010
0.0
Margot
as B.Q.
2009
5.5
The Passion
as Mary
2008
5.3
Half Broken Things
as Jean
2007
6.5
Celebration
as Julie
2007
6.3
Five Days
as Barbara Poole
2007
5.9
The History Boys
as Mrs. Bibby
2006
6.6
Match Point
as Eleanor Hewett
2005
7.4
Pride & Prejudice
as Mrs. Gardiner
2005
8.1
Doctor Who
2005
7.6
Doctor Who
as Harriet Jones
2005
7.6
Falling
as Daisy Langrish
2005
7.2
Shaun of the Dead
as Barbara
2004
7.5
Calendar Girls
as Ruth
2003
6.5
Comedy Connections
2003
2.0
Lucky Jim
as Celia Welch
2003
0.0
Iris
as Janet Stone
2001
6.4
Bob & Rose
as Monica Gossage
2001
5.8
Victoria & Albert
as Princess Mary Louise Victoria
2001
7.6
The Whistle-Blower
as Heather Graham
2001
8.0
Victoria Wood with All the Trimmings
as Mrs. Cratchit
2000
6.5
Rockaby
as Old Woman
2000
4.8
Wives and Daughters
as Mrs. Hamley
1999
7.3
Tom's Midnight Garden
as Aunt Melbourne
1999
5.9
The Strange Case of Delfina Potocka
as Delfina / Paulina
1999
0.0
Alice Through the Looking Glass
as White Queen
1998
5.1
Talking Heads 2
1998
7.0
🎬
Landscape
as Beth
1995
10.0
Carrington
as Lady Ottoline Morrell
1995
6.1
Kavanagh Q.C.
as Barbara Watkins
1995
7.0
The Deep Blue Sea
as Hester Collyer
1994
1.0
🎬
The Return of the Borrowers
as Homily
1993
6.5
🎬
The Secret Rapture
as Marion French
1993
3.8
The Borrowers
as Homily
1992
6.4
Screaming
1992
0.0
Blame It on the Bellboy
as Patricia Fulford
1992
5.3
Performance
as Beth
1991
6.0
Performance
as Hester Collyer
1991
6.0
Talking Heads
as Rosemary
1988
6.2
Cry Freedom
as Wendy Woods
1987
7.0
Clockwise
as Pat Garden
1986
6.2
C.A.T.S. Eyes
1985
5.8
Laughterhouse
as Alice Singleton
1984
5.0
Ever Decreasing Circles
1984
7.3
The Tale of Beatrix Potter
as Beatrix Potter
1983
0.0
The Tale of Beatrix Potter
as Beatrix Potter
1982
0.0
King Lear
as Regan
1982
6.0
Country
as Virginia Carlion
1981
7.0
Othello
as Desdemona
1981
6.2
The French Lieutenant's Woman
as Sonia
1981
6.4
Pasmore
as Helen
1980
0.0
An Audience with...
as Self
1978
5.3
Able's Will
as Journalist
1977
0.0
The Norman Conquests
as Annie
1977
6.0
Joseph Andrews
as Mrs. Wilton
1977
4.8
King Lear
as Regan
1975
0.0
Mrs. Warren's Profession
as Vivie Warren
1972
0.0
Play for Today
as Virginia Carlion
1970
6.3
BBC Play of the Month
as Regan
1965
5.0
🎬
Fing!
N/A
0.0
Visitation
N/A
0.0